Recruitment & Selection

DefinitionsRecruitment: searching for and obtaining potential job candidates in sufficient numbers and quality so that the organization can select the most appropriate people for the positions

Selection: process of gathering information for the purpose of evaluating and deciding who should be employed in particular jobs

Difference between Domestic & International Staffing

Firms predisposition towards who should hold key positions in head quarters and subsidiaries(ethnocentric,polycentric,regiocentric,geocentric)

Constraints imposed by host government

Firms ability to attract right talent

Persuading managers to release bestemployees for international assignment

Issues in Staff Selection: The Myth of a Global Manager

There is a universal approach to management (ethnocentric attitude, convergence-divergence – best practices, impact of organizational culture over local culture)

People can acquire multicultural adaptability and appropriate behavior (depends on reaction to particular cultural environment, depends on effectiveness (successful use of managerial and technical skill in a foreign env.) and coping skills (being reasonably comfortable or can atleast survive in a foreign env.)

There are common characteristics shared by global managers ( lang. familiarity, inclusive behavior,linking the foreign assignment with their own career progress)

There are no impediments to global mobility (reality is time, cost, host country requirements curtail the effectiveness of the MNC)

Issues in Staff Selection: Profile of an Expatriate

Profile drawn from the results of 2002 survey of 181 multinational worldwide operating in 130 countries of which 77% were headquartered in USAMajority males (82%)Age 30-49 (60%)Marital status :married (65%),single (26%)Accompanied by Spouse (86%), with children(59%)Location: within Europe (35%),Asiapacific (24%)Primary reason to fill a positionPrior international experience 30%

Issues in Staff Selection: Expatriate Failure

Meaning of Expatriate failure: premature return of an expatriate Points to selection error compounded with ineffective expat. management policy Recently this definition questioned. An expat. May be ineffective, poorly adjusted yet not recalled so not considered a failure.Support for broad defi. of expat. failure came from1997/98 Price Waterhouse study of international assignment policy and practice among European multinationals (including US subsidiaries)

Magnitude of Expat. Failure Phenomenon

Harzing questioned the reported failure rate and said that there is no empirical evidence for the existence of high failure rates

The discussion of expat failure began with Tung’s 1981 article which pointed out the inability of US nationals to handle an international assignment.

Tung concluded that expat. Failure was more of a concern for US firms

Expat failure more a US prob. (24%firms had recall rates below 10%, n=80) compared to Europe (59%24%firms had recall rates below 10%, n=29) or Japan (76% firms had recall rate below 5% ,n=35)

Two Surveys

ORC Worldwide: 300 MNC (46% north American,28% European,9% UK)

Results: 56% did not know the return rate of their expats.

Those who did keep records reported less than 10% of early recall

GMAC-Global Relocation Services (GMAC-GRS)

39% did not have the figures of expat. Failure

Those who did have information indicated 17% failure rate

Reasons for failure have not been studied in detailReasons for failure and definition of failure are often mixed.Some of the reasons for failure identified are:Unmet business objectivesProblems at assignment locationUnmet career development

Cost of failure:

direct (airfare, relocation expense, salary & training) indirect (difficulty with host government official, demand that expat be replaced by HCN thus affecting staffing policy)

Factors Moderating Performance

Inability to adjust to foreign culture (expat, spouse, children) cultural differences US & JapanProcess of adjustment-tourist, crisis, pulling up, adjustmentLength of AssignmentWillingness to move Work Environment related factors (intent to stay, PCN’s commitment to the local company, adjust with HCN’s and general living conditions, skill utilization, commitment to the organization)

Employment relationships (psychological contract, nature of employment relationship)

Selection Criteria

Technical Ability

Cross cultural suitability

Family requirements

Country cultural requirements (work permit, social charter & EU)

MNE requirements (no. of PCN, TCN, HCN)

Language

Selection tests

Other Issues

Dual Career Couples

Female Expatriates